Shoe-maker s last



(No Model.)

G. W. KELLER. SHOE MAKERS LAST.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

. GEORGE WM. KELLER OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSY LVANIA.

- SHOE-MAK'ERS LAST.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 384.448, dated June 12,1s 88.

Application filed April 29, 1857. Serial No. 236,505. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE WM. KELLER,

- a citizen of the United States, and a residentof Philadelphia,Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in ShoeMakers Lasts,

of which the following is a specification.

ro ject of my invention being to provide a last of this character whichcan be cheaply manufactured and can be used with as much facility as anordinary wooden last. This object I attain by first making a mold ormatrix from the foot, and then casting or otherwise introducingdirectlyinto said mold or matrix lead or other material of suchcharacter that it will receive and retain thb lasting-tacks, so that thereproduction is capable of use as a last in the ordi: nary manner.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is.

a perspective view of a flask for making a mold or matrix in accordanceWith my invention, the different parts of the flask being shownasseparated from each other. Fig. 2 is a sectional view showing, the flaskwith its mold fitted together and the mold filled, and

Fig. 3 is a sectional view showing the use of a core.

The flask shown in Fig. 1 comprises five parts-namely, the baseA,-instep.portion B, opposite side portions, D D, and heel portion Fthegeneral conformation of these parts being such as is required by theaverage human foot. The flask'is made of any suitable material,preferably metal, and the different parts of the flask are constructedfor being readily fitted together or detached from each other.

In making the mold ,a stocking is drawn on over the foot, and thisstocking is lubricated, in order to prevent the plaster-of-paris orother material or composition of which themold or matrix is to. be madefrom sticking thereto. A portion of the plaster or other material beingpoured into the base, the foot' is placed therein, and the base is thenfilled to such a level as will not cause any portion of the material tooverlap any part of the foot, and thus prevent the withdrawal of thefoot from the mold. When the material inthe base has become set, theupper surface of the same is lubricated or otherwise treated topreventthe material afterward inserted from sticking thereto, and the upperportions of the flask are then applied to the. base portion so. as toinclose the foot, the flask being then fillediwith the material over theinstep, around the heel, and up to the desired point on the ankle. Whenthe material in the upper part of the flask has become set, the parts ofthe flask are detached from each other, the'por'iion B being lifted fromthe instep, the portion F removed rearwardl-y from the heel, and theportions Dremoved laterally, whereupon the foot is free to be liftedfrom the base portion of the mold.

l'Vhen the parts of the flask with their contained sections of the moldare again fitted together, they form a matrix, by which may be formed areproduction of the foot from which This may be done by the mold wasmade.

simply pouring molten metal-such as lead into the mold; or themold maybe filled with t such that'nails or pegs can be driven into the same forsecuring insoles to the last, or for other purposes.

The last is preferably provided witha core, G, of wood or composition,as shown in Fig. 3, the metal or other material filling the spacebetween said core and the interior of the mold, so as to form a shellaround the core.

When it is desired that the last shall have a removable instep portion,suitable dividingplates, 0,, may be inserted in the mold before theformation of the last therein, so as to separate the instep portion ofthe last from the other portion, and the same plan may be adopted whenthe last is provided with a core, the latter being made in two parts, asshown in Fig. 3. i

I am aware that a last forming a reproduction of an individual humanfoot is not new, it having been before proposed to make such a last by aseries of operations comprising the formation of a sectional matrix fromthe foot,

the making of a plaster cast in said matrix,

the use of this plaster cast as a pattern for the formation of a sandmold, the casting of an iron last in said mold, and the drilling andplugging of said iron last to provide the same with portions forreceiving the lasting-tacks; but it will be observed that I dispensewith the last three and decidedly most costly steps of this process, andtherefore make a last which is much cheaper than one made by the processreferred to, my improved last being also much more acceptable in usethan one made in the manner just described, for the reason that saidimproved last can be used with the same facility asa wooden last,whereasthe use of a cast-iron last plugged for receiving the lasting-tacksnecessitates the driving of these tack-s always in the same places, andconsequently demands the exercise of much greater care than usual in thelasting operation.

I therefore claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. The within-described flask for making a mold of the foot,said'flask comprising a base portion, A, for the sole of the foot,- aninstep portion, 13, covering the top of the foot, a'portion, F, at therear of the heel, opposite side portions, D, interposed between the heelportion and instep portion above the base, said side portions havingflanges projecting lIJ- wardly toward the foot, which are adapted toseparate the side portions from the other portions of the flask, andfastening devices for separably securing the various portions of theflask together in their proper relative positions, all substantially asspecified.

2. A shoe-makerslast composed of cast-lead or equivalent material, asdescribed, and forming a reproduction of an individual human foot, allsubstantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE \VM. KELLER.

\Vit nesses:

ALBERT PorKINs, HARRY SMITH.

